Pune: The forest department has successfully captured a fully grown male leopard responsible for attacking and killing an eight-year-old boy in Tejewadi, Junnar taluka.
The tragic incident occurred early Wednesday (September 25) morning when the leopard attacked Rupesh Tanhaji Jadhav, who had gone to a nearby soybean field with his grandfather.
The leopard, which had been lurking in a nearby sugarcane field, fatally pounced on the young boy. His body was later discovered in the sugarcane field.
The leopard was caught at around 7 PM evening on September 25, after forest officials set up nine traps in the area in response to the growing concerns of local residents.
The traps were strategically placed, with chickens used as bait, and successfully ensnared the predator. The captured leopard has now been transferred to the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Center for further observation and action.
This tragic incident follows a similar one that occurred in April, in which a three-year-old shepherd girl was killed by a leopard in the nearby village of Shiroli Budruk.
In the last five months, two children have lost their lives to leopard attacks in this region, leading to widespread fear and anger among residents. They are demanding permanent solutions to prevent future incidents and protect their families from these dangerous predators.
In response to these incidents, the forest department intensified its efforts to capture the man-eating leopard.
Under the leadership of Deputy Conservator of Forests Amol Satpute and Forest Range Officer Pradeep Chavan, forest teams worked around the clock to locate and capture the animal. Nine traps were deployed in the area, and it was in one of these that the leopard was finally caught.
